Author: Sudhanshu Rewari

Did you know that February is Heart Month in Canada? This awareness month brings attention to the importance of heart health and the things we can to do to help reduce our risk of heart disease – like visiting one of our friendly local pharmacies to check your blood pressure.

Our Pharmacy team really takes this month “to heart” for many important reasons:

• 9 in 10 Canadians have at least one risk factor for heart conditions, stroke or vascular cognitive impairment
• 45% more women die of stroke than men in Canada; and because women live longer than men (on average), more women live with the effects of stroke
• Over the past decade, there has been a 25% increase in heart failures in Canada
• Heart disease and stroke take a life every 7 minutes in this country
  • Statistics from The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada

Know your numbers!

The good news is that 80% of heart conditions are preventable. This is why we’re encouraging our customers and employees to regularly check their blood pressure at one of our Safeway pharmacy locations. Our in-store blood pressure machines make it convenient to check your blood pressure while in-store to ensure you’re within an optimal range. Plus, we offer our customers and teammates Blood Pressure Check Cards so you can record readings and review them with a health care professional, including our own team of pharmacists.

We make it easy for you to get your blood pressure in check. Help us spread the word – because whether your numbers are high or low, it’s important to know!

Did you hear? Empire Company and our family of brands, including Safeway, has officially partnered with District Ventures to meaningfully invest in Canadian entrepreneurs.

Led by renowned entrepreneur and investor, Arlene Dickinson, District Ventures is Canada’s leading ecosystem focused on bringing capital, marketing, programming and commercialization to companies in the food, beverage and health CPG industries. District Ventures is headquartered in Calgary with an office and commercial kitchen located in Toronto.

Through this one-of-a-kind partnership, Canadian food entrepreneurs in the District Ventures Accelerator program will receive valuable support from Empire, including coaching from Local Development Managers and opportunities to bring their products to our shelves within a region or across Canada. This new partnership is a natural extension of our long-standing commitment to being the national grocer that Canadian families can count on for local food and well-being products that they have come to know and love.

“This exciting new partnership is enormous for entrepreneurs and companies in the food, beverage and health industries,” said Arlene Dickinson, CEO of District Ventures. “Since 2015, we have been committed to supporting early stage companies in these spaces. Empire’s sponsorship highlights the importance of this work and reinforces the fact that we need to support companies that both feed and nourish our communities and assist them in achieving their fullest potential.”

“Empire has a rich history of meaningfully investing in local growers and suppliers across Canada,” said Jana Sobey, Vice President of Merchandising, Thrifty Foods, Community and Field for Sobeys Inc. “Supporting local is at the heart of everything we do, and we are incredibly proud to stand side-by-side with District Ventures as we continue to nurture the countless innovative food entrepreneurs in communities large and small right across our country.” ​

Stay tuned to Safeway Talks for more exciting updates as our new partnership progresses – and don’t forget to check out the assortment of local Alberta products in your nearest Safeway store!

At Safeway, we always say that our customers are like our family. Each and every day, we make meaningful connections with the countless customers who enter our stores, and often find ourselves invested in the details of their lives, their achievements, their goals, and their hardships. If there’s anyone who knows the true value of a meaningful customer connection, it’s Jane Mueller, Manager of the Floral Department at Safeway Port O’Call Mall in Red Deer.

Jane joined the Safeway family a year ago, but has devoted more than 25 years to working with flowers and creating artistic arrangements. Jane’s love of flowers goes beyond their beauty; she appreciates the message that flowers carry and the emotions that they elicit. We recently sat down with Jane to get her thoughts on the role that flowers play in our customers’ lives and the importance of the floral department at Safeway.

What makes the floral department such a unique area of the store? 

Flowers carry the beauty of colours and earthy smells that always make people feel good, even if just walking through the department. I also love the sentiment flowers bring. They are not just a gift; they are a thought. Most of the time, flowers are given with meaning and come from the heart, regardless if it’s to celebrate a happy time or mourn a sad time.

I’m sure you interact with customers from all different walks of life. Why is it important to form meaningful connections with our customers – and how do you often do so?

This connects to why I’m drawn to working in floral – to help our customers express their thoughts through the gift of flowers. In my department, it’s important to interact and connect with our customers, understand their occasion and needs, then through our flower selection and bouquets, convey the messages they want to share.

Florists are creative people – we take pride and enjoy selling flowers because we see each floral arrangement as a piece of art.

What is your favourite part of working on the floral team? What is most challenging?

My favourite part of working on the floral team is twofold – working alongside the amazing team I work with, as well as the ability to be creative with such beautiful products. There is never a bad day when working with flowers.

The most challenging responsibility is forecasting the types of flowers and quantities needed for our store. We plan far in advance, so it’s important to understand trends and the wants of our customer demographic. I always strive to serve the needs of our customers the best I can.

Do you have any tips to help keep our floral arrangements looking beautiful for even longer?

There’s a few tips to help keep floral arrangements lasting longer, and it all starts with the preparation stage right in the floral department. First, be sure to use only the freshest flowers and don’t over-handle them. Always keep them in fresh treated water. Once the arrangement is complete, my key ingredient to keeping them fresher longer is the Crowning Glory Flower Spray. Lastly, when conditioning the flowers, cut the stems at least one inch to help them properly absorb water.

What do you look forward to for the floral department at Safeway?

I’m excited for the growth opportunities within the floral department because there are still many people who don’t know that there is a flower shop within their local Safeway store. Through connecting with specific groups and agencies within the community, combined with consistently exceeding customer expectations, we can greatly expand our reach and further connect with our customers during their meaningful moments, like high school graduations, school dances and corporate parties.

Be sure to visit the floral department the next time you stop by your local Safeway store, and stay tuned to Safeway Talks for more Safeway Employee Spotlights highlighting the unique work of our Safeway colleagues!

We’ve been back at the bargaining table with UFCW 401 this week. As always, we’re committed to being open and honest with you and want to ensure that you’re updated every step of the way. We know that progress to date has sometimes felt slow and challenging, but we’re hopeful that this week’s discussions are an encouraging sign of increasing momentum to continue.

As we’ve shared before, it’s our current intention to invest $200 million in the Safeway network over the next five years. However, we cannot accomplish this if we do not have the right collective agreement in place to provide stability for our business. We need stability through a number of factors to invest the money. The FreshCo expansion plans are not included in the $200 million investment. Both parties have recognized that these discussions will be difficult, and have agreed to the use of a mediator commencing this April. Together, we’re committed to coming to a fair agreement in a timely manner that is in all of our best interest.

Whether you’re a long-time Alberta native or new to the province, there’s no denying that we’ve seen incredible change. Our communities are changing, our customers are changing, and our economy is changing. And it will continue to change. This is why – now more than ever – it’s absolutely crucial that we come to a competitive agreement that is in all of our best interest.

We’ve been open in sharing that some of our Safeway stores are struggling as the retail market in Alberta continues to change. We’re seeing more cost-conscious customers who aren’t interested in our full-service Safeway model, no matter how hard you continue to work or the unparalleled customer service you provide. Cost conscious shoppers are looking for the option that best suits their needs and without a viable discount option, customers will continue to shop elsewhere. We know that it’s important to put the right stores in the right market and opening FreshCo stores will help us move in the right direction.  However, FreshCo does not solve all of the issues that many Safeway stores are facing. The majority of Safeway stores are not converting to FreshCo, but without a change, will continue to struggle against our competition. This is why we must have a competitive deal for Safeway to survive in Alberta. We will continue to be faced with a significant competitive disadvantage until a fair agreement is reached.

There’s so many exciting opportunities that await us in the year ahead, and we’re hopeful that we can work with your Union and your Bargaining Committee to reach a fair collective agreement that balances all of our needs. Thank you for your continued hard work in our stores. Our true Safeway pride is alive and well in Alberta.

It’s no secret that our teams are deeply invested in our local communities year-round, but this holiday season, you showed us just how strong our Safeway heart really is. Thank you to our incredible teams across Alberta for their meaningful participation in this year’s Random Acts of Kindness initiative. With every single thoughtful donation, you made a lasting impact on those deserving and most in need. We are so proud to be on your team.

A special thank you to those who shared their Random Acts of Kindness on our closed Facebook group, Safeway Team: Connecting Our Stores, Our People, Our Communities. As a family nurturing families, we are committed to supporting and giving back to the communities we serve. Individually, our contributions make a difference, but as a team, the possibilities are endless! ​

Check out just a few of our outstanding donations below, and don’t forget to join our Facebook group to stay up to date!

Safeway Fort Saskatchewan – Fort Saskatchewan, AB

Safeway Kensington – Calgary, AB

Safeway Odgen – Calgary, AB

Safeway Beddington Square – Calgary, AB

Safeway Chestermere Station – Chestermere, AB

Safeway Fairway Plaza – Lethbridge, AB

For 90 years, Safeway has invested in the communities across Western Canada where we proudly live, work and play. While our commitment to giving back has always been rooted in our core company values, it goes without saying that our outstanding employees are the driving force behind our commitment to community service. Whether it’s through the donation of time, effort or money, our team members take pride in serving their communities, and when Safeway employees join forces for a shared cause, the impact is truly incredible.

The Safeway Operations and Community Investment teams proudly presented the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation with a donation of $176,862 on behalf of our Safeway retail employees and the Employee Payroll Donation program. By generously donating a small portion of every pay cheque, Safeway teammates give back to the causes most important in their communities. Over the past five years, through the continuous generosity of Safeway employees, close to $1.1 million has been donated to the Alberta Children’s Hospital alone. Truly an incredible, inspiring effort – way to go, team!

The Alberta Children’s Hospital cares for children aged newborn to 17 from across Alberta, southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Saskatchewan. One of the hospital’s particular areas of focus is children with cancer. With a team of dedicated scientists, the Alberta Children’s Hospital is committed to discovering new and better cures by researching less toxic and more effective cancer treatments. This work includes boosting a child’s own immune system to fight cancer, targeting cancer stem cells to prevent aggressive cancers from returning, and improving bone marrow transplant donor selection to reduce disease, infections and relapse. This ground-breaking work is all made possible through generous donations, like that of our Safeway team. More specifically, the support from Safeway employees helps to equip hospital labs with the people and technology needed for researchers to carry out their work in the timeliest manner.

Thank you to each and every one of our teammates for all that you do to support and serve your local communities. It is because of your unwavering commitment that children in our community can benefit from new cancer discoveries, treatment and cures. Thank you.